倒是 (dào shì) — how to say "however" in Chinese

倒是

However; actually; on the contrary

modal adverb

How to use it

Goes before the verb and shows the speaker's attitude.

他倒是很聪明。

tā dào shì hěn cōng míng

He is quite smart, actually.

Character composition

倒

to fall; contrary

是

to be

Radicals / Keys

日

Sun

#72 · rì · 4 strokes

人

Man

#9 · rén · 2 strokes

Collocations

我倒是想去的地方

wǒ dào shì xiǎng qù de dì fang

a place I actually want to go to

Examples

这个问题倒是简单,但我不明白。

This problem is actually simple, but I don't understand.

他倒是来了。

He did come, though.

Writing

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Frequently asked questions

How to say however in Mandarin?

"however" in Chinese is 倒是 (dào shì).

Dao shi meaning in Chinese

倒是 (dào shì) means "However; actually; on the contrary".

How is 倒是 pronounced?

It is pronounced dào shì (written as dao shi, daoshi). You can listen to the pronunciation on this page.

How do you write "however" in Chinese characters?

It is written 倒是: 倒 has 10 strokes, 是 has 9 strokes. The Writing section above animates the stroke order of each character and lets you trace it.

What HSK 3.0 level is 倒是?

倒是 is on the HSK 3.0 level 6 word list. It is not part of the six-level HSK 2.0 lists.

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Grammar with 倒是

More HSK 3.0 level 6 words